AIFO is an International NGO with headquarters in Bologna, Italy, working in the field of international health cooperation and disability since 1961. AIFO operates in Liberia since 1997. AIFO Liberia’s mission focuses on the promotion of disability rights, building the capacity of local Disabled People Organizations (DPOs) and on fostering economic independence for People with Disabilities (PWDs).

AIFO Liberia seeks a consultant to conduct an external end evaluation for the “Disability And Start Up (DASU) – Civil society as protagonist of inclusive development in Liberia” project, which is funded by the Italian Agency for Development and Cooperation AICS. The objective of this assignment is to provide an in-depth analysis of the projects’ implementation processes and results.

How to respond to this request for proposal

Interested candidates are invited to request for a copy of the project log frame and M&E plan for reference by sending an email with subject line DASU project end evaluation to melany.oey@aifo.it.

The proposal shall comprise:

1. A cover letter stating why you consider your service suitable for the assignment (1 page) 2. CVs highlighting qualifications and experience in similar projects
2. Work references – contact details (e-mail addresses) of referees (firms for whom you’ve produced similar assignments)
3. A brief document explaining the methodology on the approach and implementation of the assignment 5. A detailed budget indicating consultancy fee and a breakdown of expenses (unit price together with any other expenses) related to the assignment

Interested individuals/institutions/firms should have:

 Relevant academic degree (master level) in economics, statistics, sociology or other similar studies

 A minimum of five years’ experience and expertise in social research, incl. social science methods

 Conducted at least three evaluations in the last five years ideally in the relevant field

 Knowledge and working experience of Liberia with focus on topics such as disability, socio-economic inclusion, awareness campaigns

 Experience and expertise in evaluating cross-cutting issues

 Experience in qualitative and quantitative data analysis

 Excellent report writing skills

All applications should be sent via email to Ms. Melany Oey (Country Director AIFO Liberia / Project Manager DASU): melany.oey@aifo.it and aifoliberia@gmail.com. Please indicate in the subject line of the email: DASU END EVALUATION.

The deadline for submission is 06 June 2021.

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TERMS OF REFERENCE (TOR) FOR END EVALUATION

1. PROJECT INFORMATION

Project Title: “DASU: Disability And Start Up. Civil society as protagonist of inclusive development in Liberia” Project ID Number: AID 011516

Country of intervention: Liberia

Areas of intervention:

 Bong, districts of Jorquekolleh, Salala and Suacoco;

 Nimba, districts of Bain Garr, Meipea Mahn and Sanniquellie Mahn;

 Grand Gedeh, district of Tchien;

Project Duration: 3 years and 4 months (40 months)

Consortium: Italian Association Amici di Raoul Follereau – AIFO (Lead Applicant); National Union of Organizations of the Disabled – NUOD (Co-applicant); National Commission on Disabilities – NCD (Partner); Italian Network on Disability and Development – RIDS ONLUS (Partner); School of Economics and Management – DISEI, University of Florence (Partner).

Donor: the Italian Agency for Development and Cooperation AICS

Budget: 1.209.903,00 €

2. INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND

People with Disabilities (PWDs) face numerous physical, attitudinal, social, cultural and economic barriers in exercising their citizenship rights. These barriers affect all the different facets of their lives, starting from school education and friendship with their peers, to access to health services, employment, housing, marriage, sports and leisure activities. (WHO, 2011)

In Liberia, the situation of people with disabilities has been further complicated by the long civil war and by the more recent Ebola Virus Crisis, increasing the barriers they need to overcome for their participation in different life-activities. (SIDA, 2014)

In particular, the high rate of unemployment among PWDs is concerning. The prejudice and discrimination against them is one of the main causes: children with disabilities do not attend school as much as their peers and they do not get socially involved in the community. This makes it hard for them to acquire the skills needed to enter the labour market. Unemployment means poverty and poverty contributes to PWDs isolation.

Disabled People Organizations (DPOs) are a great resource to promote and protect PWDs interests. The DASU project work alongside 9 DPOs at county level and the National Union of Organization of the Disabled, the federation of all DPOs in Liberia to promote socio-economic empowerment for PWDs.

The DASU project’s overall goal is to contribute strengthening the role of Civil Society Organizations (DPOs) for sustainable and inclusive growth processes in Liberia.

The project’s specific objective is to reinforce the role of People with Disabilities Organizations (DPOs) in the socio-economic development processes and in the fulfilment of People with Disabilities (PWDs) rights. In order to achieve this goal, the project includes different sets of activities, each related to a specific result.

Result 1: R1. The National Union of Organizations of the Disabled (NUOD) and 9 DPO members actively participate in the policy making with a sound role and they are in the position to promote effective initiatives for PWDs rights, with a focus on inclusive business.

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Result 2: R2. Improved the economic independence and the social participation of 120 PWDs through the creation of 30 start-ups for their self-employment.

Result 3: R3. Facilitated the inclusion of Mental Health Users in economic and social development initiatives, through a specific and participated plan.

Over its 40 months’ implementation, DASU aims at directly impact the lives of 2,326 direct beneficiaries among PWDs, Persons included in the Start-ups activities, community radio staff; and 120,000 indirect beneficiaries, including family members of PWDs, National and local authorities’ representatives, CSOs members and stakeholders attending the national and county seminars and attending the village meetings about mental health; citizens reached by the radio program and by the sensitization community meetings.

3. OBJECTIVES OF THE END EVALUATION

The objective of the end evaluation of the DASU project is to provide an in-depth analysis of the projects’ implementation processes and results. More specifically, the end evaluation should assess the DASU project contribution to:

1. the increased organizational and management capacity of The National Union of Organizations of the Disabled (NUOD) and DPO members and their ability to affect policymaking processes and promote effective initiatives for PWDs rights, with a focus on inclusive business.
2. the improved economic independence and the social participation of PWDs through the creation of start-ups for their self-employment.
3. the inclusion of Mental Health Users in economic and social development initiatives, in particular the participation of people with mental health conditions to DPOs and Start Ups promoted by the project.

Additionally, it is expected that the evaluation will assess the impact of the COVID-19 Communication and Community Engagement Program activities that were adapted specifically to contribute to the COVID-19 response in Liberia, while simultaneously achieving the original DASU activity objectives.

The evaluation should provide information that is credible (evidence based) and useful, enabling the incorporation of lessons learned into AIFO decision-making process.

4. SPECIFIC EVALUATION QUESTIONS

Because the end evaluation aims at providing a holistic overview of the project results and impact with a focus on lessons learned, the OECD DAC evaluation criteria for effective evaluations1 shall be applied. The key areas of focus of the evaluation should therefore include:

 Relevance: Is the intervention doing the right things?

 Coherence: How well does the intervention fit?

 Effectiveness: Is the intervention achieving its objectives?

 Efficiency: How well are resources being used?

 Impact: What difference does the intervention make?

 Sustainability: Will the benefits last?

The end evaluation should also assess the project’s performance on cross cutting issues; gender equality, disability inclusion, added value and participation.

1 Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) https://www.oecd.org/dac/evaluation/revised-evaluation criteria-dec-2019.pdf

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In addition, the evaluation should assess the effectiveness of project management, including the collaboration and communication with project partners and stakeholders and monitoring of project performance and results.

Particular attention will be paid to the processes of realization of activities (respect for inclusive modes, effective participation of beneficiaries, perception of satisfaction, management and co-ordination between partners, level of skills gained from them during the implementation; visibility).

Moreover, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to assess the impact of COVID-19 on project results and to assess how COVID-19 affected the lives of PWDs, in particular the impact it had on the Start Ups and those involved them.

All data collected must be disaggregated by sex, age, disability type and catchment areas.

5. APPROACH AND METHODS

The end evaluation is carried out by an external evaluator who has no previous links to the project, with the involvement of internal evaluators: The Management and Monitoring Committee; the Technical & Scientific Commission; representatives of DPOs; the project staff; beneficiaries; the main stakeholders.

It is expected that the consultant will provide a methodology about how to measure the project results. Consistent with the Community Based Inclusion Approach adopted in the project, the end evaluation shall be carried out using mixed and participatory methodologies (co-evaluations), both quantitative and qualitative (focus groups, interviews, case studies, self-assessment tests).

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is expected that the consultant adapts the methodology of the end evaluation towards the current context, inline with government regulations and restrictions, observing COVID 19 safety and preventive measures to minimise the risk of spreading the virus.

6. TIMELINE

The end evaluation consists of several phases:

21 June – Contract and Kick-off meeting: Contract is signed, and a discussion of the assignment takes place. First documents, including available data, are provided to the evaluation team. (1 day)

22-25 – Desk Study: The evaluator studies all necessary project documents. Existing data needs to be analysed and interpreted. (4 days)

28 June – 2 July – Inception-Phase + Training Fieldwork: In the inception report, the evaluator will design and present research tools and a detailed methodology, including a data collection planning worksheet or a similar tool. Interviews with senior DASU staff and partners also take place. The training of enumerators and the field research will only take place upon official approval of the inception report by the contractor. (5 days)

5-13 July – Field-Research: It is expected that the evaluation collects data from all project locations (Monrovia, Bong, Nimba, Grand-Gedeh), including DPOs, start-ups, and project stakeholders. (8 days)

16 July – Draft Report: Submission and presentation of final draft report. Inclusion of comments from partners and contractor. (3 days)

23 July – Final Report: Submission of final report, in line with all project deliverables (see section 8) (2 days)

For the different phases, it is expected that data and information will be obtained through different methods such as: analysis of documents, structured interviews, semi-structured interviews face-to face, group discussions, others.

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7. BUDGET

The consultant should provide a detailed budget in which all costs as it relates to the implementation of this end evaluation are outlined. The evaluator is expected to work across the three localities where the DASU project is implemented (Grand Gedeh, Nimba and Bong counties) and the city of Monrovia and surrounding areas. For data collection, a sample of locations can be taken.

8. DELIVERABLES

The consultant will deliver the following:

 a project kick-off meeting

 an inception report

 a final draft evaluation report, including a draft executive summary and the results-assessment form (part of the reporting requirement)

 and the final evaluation report, the final executive summary and the results-assessment form (part of the reporting requirement)

All reports must be written in English.

All data collected must be disaggregated by sex, age, disability type and catchment areas.

Identify lessons learned and provide recommendations: It is expected that the evaluator will present concrete recommendations addressed to each specific stakeholder. The findings and recommendations of the draft final report and final report have to be structured according to the evaluation questions. An outline of the report’s structure needs to be agreed upon during the inception phase.

The executive summary should summarize key findings and recommendations (two to three pages) and needs to be submitted as part of the final draft report.

Do not apply via the system, kindly follow the instruction above